Ensure pre-flight alcohol tests of 50% crew members, DGCA tells airlines

Airlines must ensure that 50 per cent of their cockpit and cabin crew members are subjected to pre-flight alcohol tests daily, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said on Tuesday.

Before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, all crew members were required to undergo this test. However, when the pandemic began, they were suspended for a couple of months. Later, the tests resumed but only for a small percentage of the crew members.

DGCA issued the notice, saying that crew members will undergo these tests "in view of reducing trend of Covid-19 cases and increase in the volume of air traffic as a result of the resumption of normal operation".

"In case of flying training institutes, 50 per cent of instructors and 40 per cent of student pilots shall be subjected to pre-flight breath-analyser on a daily basis," DGCA said. Operators or owners of charter planes must ensure that 50 per cent of their crew members undergo these tests, it said.

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Written submission

Every aviation employee who is reporting for duty is required to submit an undertaking that he or she is not under the influence of alcohol and that he or she has not consumed alcohol in the last 12 hours from the time of reporting for duty, DGCA said.

"The cockpit crew, cabin crew shall submit the undertaking in the presence of a medical staff and the same shall be captured on camera," it mentioned.

DGCA said the notice issued on Tuesday will remain in force for three months. India resumed fully scheduled international flights on March 27. The country resumed full scheduled domestic flights on October 18, 2021.

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